Reset Reputation Points?

[Thorburn]

Here is how the reputation system works:

If you give someone positive reputation points, he'll get a certain value added to his reputation. The number of points you are able to add to a member's reputation is called your reputation power.

Your reputation power depends on

• when you signed up (the earlier you joined the forum, the larger your power),
• your number of posts (the more posts you have, the larger your power), and
• the number of reputation points you have already accumulated (the more rep points you have, the larger your reputation power.)

When we upgraded the forum software to vB 3 last year (which introduced the reputation system), I adjusted the default settings, so that it doesn't take that long to accumulate a reasonable level of reputation.

As a consequence, however, the reputation points soon exploded. Once a relatively high level of reputation was achieved, it turned into an avalanche what is pretty self-explanatory if people can distribute ever more rep points the more rep points they have themselves.

You can compare that with the rep points on Stormfront which upgraded to vB 3 at about the same time. Nobody has even close the number of rep points people on Skadi have. vBulletin doesn't even add additional green display dots for rep scores higher than 1,500; a score considered insane and unreachable even on the largest boards after years of use with the default settings.

To get this explosion at least somewhat under control, we adjusted the reputation point settings again several weeks or a couple of months ago: people now get less rep power to spend on others.

This, however, is a disadvantage for newer members, as they couldn't participate in the rep point baby boom what makes the system now a bit skew.

There is, unfortunately, no function provided by vBulletin that would permit us to recalculate the received rep points based on the new settings.

What we could do is either

• leave the rep points as they are, or
• reset them to a certain base value (let's say 10 as it is the default for new members) for everyone, i. e. start all over.

There is actually no function for the latter either but this could be done simply by executing a single mySQL query, replacing the value of the rep point field with 10 for all members in the table, and takes a few seconds.

Comments given so far would not be lost.

Furthermore, there has been a dispute whether the comments should be public or not.

There are different options:

• make them semi-private, i. e. only moderators and the recipient can read them,
• make them public but don't display either in public or to the recipient who made the comment, or
• make them public but don't display in public who made the comment; allow the recipient to see who made the comment, and
• make them public and display who made the comment publicly (as we have now.)

There is no way to make them completely private, i. e. to bar moderators from reviewing them.

Tell us what you think, please, and vote in the poll.

[Siegfried]

Don't reset the reputation points. Allow only the recipient and moderators to view reputation comments. Display to the recipient who made the comment; I think it's only fair that people know where their points come from, especially if they're negative.

[Jack]

Don't reset the reputation points. Allow only the recipient and moderators to view reputation comments. Display to the recipient who made the comment; I think it's only fair that people know where their points come from, especially if they're negative.

Exactly.

I've been working too hard trying to clock up rep points to have them all vapourised for the satisfactions of a few newbies

Seriously though, I do agree with Siegfried.

[rusalka]

I voted for the two options, either let's make it as it were before (only the moderators and the recipients can view the reputation points and comments -hoping that the moderators will not view them) or if it is not fair (ie. moderators being able to read them, thus giving a false sense of security) let's make the points (meaning "agrees", "disagrees") public but make the comments (and maybe even the poster) available to the recipient only. I think another drawback of the new system is, most people refrain from giving rep points in the first place and when they do, hardly make any comments (naturally). The other drawback is -I think- it's possible to skew the actual results, meaning, seeing that a post has already received rep points people refrain from or feel obliged to give it rep points themselves or vice versa (I almost stopped making sense here ).

In any case, the decision is yours, of course. And again, in any case, the moderators should refrain from checking out the private reputation points.

[Newgrange]

how about Reputation Points given for amount of time spent in Skadi forum, Two weeks equals 10 points or something like that. Can a list be shown of members who spend most time on Skadi forum ?

[Thorburn]

how about Reputation Points given for amount of time spent in Skadi forum, Two weeks equals 10 points or something like that.

Not possible currently, as the "board time spent" function is a private software modification, and it is not linked to the reputation system.

Can a list be shown of members who spend most time on Skadi forum ?

That would be possible: there is another add-on for this; one just would have to install it.

[Ewergrin]

Why not do away with them period? So much drama over artificial internet status. Who cares?!?

[rusalka]

Why not do away with them period? So much drama over artificial internet status. Who cares?!?

Yeah, that's also a possibility with which I agree. Although we should keep the comment thing even if we get rid of the points, I think it's fun.

[Awar]

I dunno, I like getting the green ones
The people seem to like rep. points also. I've heard at least a dozen members on other message boards wish they had 'em as an option.

[cosmocreator]

Rep points should be reset to zero for everyone. Comments should be viewable to the public as it is now. It keeps people honest.